Stackable plant carrying system

ABSTRACT

Stackable plant trays may be sized with inside dimensions which are the same as conventional flats, but with sides that are substantially taller, thereby permitting plants to be protected when multiple trays of the present invention are stacked together. The sides of the trays may be formed in a lattice or mesh pattern, thereby allowing air and light to freely move through the tray, even with a second tray stacked on top thereof. The present invention provides an improvement over conventional plant trays, which may have sides that are just tall enough to hold the plant pots in place and would not allow for the stacking of one on top of the other.

This application claims the benefit of provisional patent application No. 60/828,932, filed Oct. 10, 2006.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to a plant carrying system and more particularly, to a stackable plant carrying system for the transport of multiple plant flats.

A “flat”, as used herein, may refer to a lidless box or tray used for transporting trays of rooted seedlings, cuttings and young plants. Typical flats may have inner dimensions sized to hold, for example, sixteen (16) four-inch plant pots or six (6) industry standard pony packs. Such typical flats may have inner dimensions for example of 16 ¾ inches by 16 ¾ inches.

As shown in FIG. 1, a conventional flat 10 may have a depth 12 just tall enough to secure the plant pots 14 within the flat 10. For example, the depth 12 of the conventional flat 10 may be about three inches. Plants 16 grown in the plant pots 14 may extend above the sides 18 of the flat 10.

The transport of conventional flats, for example, in a vehicle when a purchaser takes the plants home or in a garden cart, would not permit the stacking of the flats, as damage to the plants would probably occur.

As can be seen, there is a need for an improved plant carrying system that would permit the stacking of flats without damage to the plants within the flats.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect of the present invention, a carrying tray comprises a plurality of side walls that extend above the items to be carried in the tray; at least one of the side walls includes a configuration that allows air circulation inside the tray; at least one of the side walls includes a hand hold; and at least one of the side walls includes a nesting and locking component.

In another aspect of the present invention, a stackable plant tray comprises a plurality of side walls that extend above the plants carried in the tray; at least one of the side walls and the base of the tray includes a configuration that allows air circulation inside the tray; reinforcing hard points for transferring a weight load through the tray to the base of the tray; and at least one of the side walls includes a nesting and locking component.

In yet another aspect of the present invention, a plant transportation system comprises at least a first tray and a second tray, wherein each of the first and the second tray includes a plurality of side walls that extend above the plants transported in each of the first and second trays; at least one of the side walls of the tray includes a configuration that allows air circulation inside the tray; and at least one of the side walls includes a nesting and locking component.

These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings, description and claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing plants in a conventional flat according to the prior art;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing plants in a flat according to the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing multiple flats stacked according to the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a close-up view taken along 4-4 of FIG. 3 showing an embodiment for aligning the stackable flats according to the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a close-up view taken along 4-4 of FIG. 3 showing an embodiment for aligning the stackable flats according to the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a perspective, plan view of a disassembled stackable flat according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a side view of the disassembled stackable flat of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is perspective, bottom view of the dissembled stackable flat of FIG. 6;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a stackable flat, according to an embodiment of the present invention, during assembly;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of an assembled stackable flat according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the stackable flat of FIG. 10 in a partially disassembled state;

FIG. 12 is a side view of the partially disassembled stackable flat of FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing a half-height feature of the stackable flat according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 14 is a perspective, plan view of a stackable flat with an alternate hand hold arrangement according to the present invention;

FIG. 15 is a perspective, plan view of a stackable flat with a further alternate hand hold arrangement according to the present invention; and

FIG. 16 is a perspective view of the stackable flat of FIG. 15 in a half-height folded configuration.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following detailed description is of the best currently contemplated modes of carrying out the invention. The description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merely for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention, since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims.

Broadly, the present invention provides trays for holding plants, the trays being stackable one on top of another. The trays may be sized with inside dimensions which are the same as conventional flats, but having sides that are substantially taller, thereby permitting plants to be protected when multiple trays of the present invention are stacked together. The sides of the trays may be formed in a lattice or mesh pattern, thereby allowing air and light to freely move through the tray, even with a second tray stacked on top thereof. The sides may be foldable approximately in half to create shorter sides, especially suitable for easy viewing on, for example, a garden center's sales counter. The sides may also be folded almost parallel with the base of the tray, thereby allowing convenient storage of the stackable trays when not in use.

Conventional plant trays may have sides that are just tall enough to hold the plant pots in place and would not allow for stacking. Such conventional plant trays, also referred to as flats, would require more surface area for transport from one location to another. For example, a flat containing sixteen 4-inch by 4-inch pots would require a surface area (for example, in a vehicle or a garden cart) of about 256 square inches to transport the sixteen pots. However, with the stackable plant trays of the present invention, multiple trays can be stacked on top of each other. For example, with 4 plant trays of the present invention stacked on top of each other, the same 256 square inches could transport 64 4-inch by 4-inch plant pots.

The stackable plant trays of the present invention may be beneficial to commercial and retail users, as well as growers. They could greatly simplify the transportation of flatted plant material in commercial landscaping and in home gardening. In commercial landscaping, the stackable plant tray of the present invention may contribute to a more efficient and easier transportation of flatted material to and on the job. For example, the time consuming protective procedure of loading flatted material on temporary plywood shelves in the contractor's truck could be avoided. The result may be a faster and more time efficient handling of plant material on the job.

In the home and hobby gardening field, customers are often limited as to the amount of plant material they can purchase at any one time by the amount of plant material they can load into their vehicle. With the stackable plant trays of the present invention, a customer can load two, three or even four times the amount of flatted material at each purchase. The costumer may save additional trips to the garden center, while the vendor may have an increased sales ticket.

The stackable trays of the present invention may also be useful for growers who may often wait until the plants are in bloom to deliver the products to the garden centers. Should a heavy rain storm occur while the plants are in bloom, the heavy rain may remove many of the plant's blooms, thereby requiring the grower to wait one to two more weeks for additional blooms to develop before delivering the products to the retail outlet. If the plants were in the stackable trays of the present invention, with the high sides, the grower may be able to lay a protective barrier, such as a plastic sheet, over the top of the stackable trays to prevent the rain from damaging the blooms on the plants.

Referring to FIG. 2, there is shown a perspective view of plants 22 in a stackable tray or flat 20 according to the present invention. The stackable tray 20 may be designed to accommodate sixteen industry standard 4-inch bedding plant pots or six industry standard pony pack pots. Sides 24 of the stackable tray 20 may be raised to a height above what is found with the industry standard flats which are conventionally used for transporting pots in the gardening and landscape industry. The sides may be, for example, 6-inches for shorter plants or 9-inches to 12-inches for taller plants. Of course, these exemplary sizes are given for example only and the sides 24 of the stackable trays 20 of the present invention may be any suitable height so as to allow stacking of the stackable trays 20, one on top of the other, without damage to the plants 22 contained therewithin.

The sides 24 of the stackable trays 20 of the present invention may provide a protective offset for the foliage and flowers of the underlying plants 22 when the stackable trays 20 are nested one upon another while, for example, being transported.

Referring now to FIGS. 2 and 3, vertical reinforcing hard points 26 may be present along the sides 24 and corners 28 of the stackable tray 20 to transfer the weight load through the stackable trays 20 to a base 30 of a bottom stackable tray 32 within a set of stackable trays 20 as shown in FIG. 3. The reinforcing hard points 26 may be vertical columns, running from the bottom of the stackable tray 32 to an upper edge thereof. The reinforcing hard points 26 may be made of a plastic material that is resistant to bending and/or breaking. Optionally, the reinforcing hard points 26 may be formed of a bend resistant metal, further optionally covered in a plastic coating.

The sides 24 of the stackable trays 20 may be formed of a lattice or mesh pattern as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. Moreover, the base 30 of the stackable trays 20 may also be formed of a lattice or mesh pattern. This design may allow for air, light and water movement throughout the stackable trays 20. Moreover, this design may allow for rapid identification of the plants 22 within a set of stacked stackable trays 20 by allowing a user to visually identify plants through the pattern in the sides 24 of the stackable trays 20. In addition, in a retail setting, the open design of the sides 24 of the stackable trays 20 may allow for visibility of the plant material in a retail display setting.

Hand holds 34 may be formed in the sides 24 of the stackable trays 20. Hand holds 34 may be formed in two opposite sides 24 a, 24 b of the stackable trays 20. Even more typically, hand holds 34 may be formed in each of the four sides 24 of the stackable trays 20, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. By choosing the appropriate set of hand holds 34 in the appropriate stackable tray 20 (for example, the bottom stackable tray 32 of FIG. 3), a plurality of stackable trays 20 may be carried by a user.

Referring now to FIG. 4, there is shown a close-up view taken along 4-4 of FIG. 3 showing one embodiment for nesting and locking the stackable trays 20 according to the present invention. A lower stackable tray 20 a may have a protrusion 40 which may align into a channel 42 of an upper stackable tray 20 b when the upper stackable tray 20 b is stacked on top of the lower stackable tray 20 a. Alternatively, and not specifically depicted in the drawings, the lower stackable tray 20 a may have a channel into which a protrusion of the upper stackable tray 20 b may align. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the protrusion 40 may be formed in an extended side portion 44 of the lower stackable tray 20 a. This protrusion 40 may fit into the channel 42 formed in the side 24 of the upper stackable tray 20 b.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the protrusions 40 and channels 42 may be located symmetrically on a portion of each side 24 of the stackable trays 20 as shown in FIG. 3. Such a configuration may allow for placement of the upper stackable tray 20 b on the lower stackable tray 20 a regardless of rotational configuration (in other words, the upper stacked tray 20 b may be rotated 90, 180 or 270 degrees and still have aligning protrusions 40 and channels 42). In an alternate embodiment of the present invention (not shown), the protrusions and channels may be formed along substantially the entire length of each side 24 of each stackable tray 20.

Referring to FIG. 5, there is shown a close-up view taken along 4-4 of FIG. 3 showing another embodiment for nesting and locking the stackable trays 20 according to the present invention. In this embodiment of the present invention, an extended side portion 46 may be formed on an upper edge 48 of the stackable trays 20. This extended side portion 46 may keep the upper stackable tray 20 b from sliding off the lower stackable tray 20 a.

Either alternatively or in addition to the extended side portion 46, an upper edge protrusion 50 may be formed along a least a portion of the upper edge 48 of the stackable trays 20. A base channel 52 may be formed along at least a portion of the base 32 of the stackable tray 20. The upper edge protrusion 50 and the base channel 52 may be formed in such a manner that the upper edge protrusion 50 may fit into the base channel 52 when the upper stackable tray 20 b is stacked on top of the lower stackable tray 20 a, as shown in FIG. 5.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the upper edge protrusions 50 and base channels 52 may be located symmetrically on a portion of each upper edge 48 and base 32, respectively, of each stackable tray 20. For example, the upper edge protrusion may be formed in the upper edge immediately below the location of the protrusions 40 as shown in FIG. 3. The base channels 52 may be formed in the base 32 immediately adjacent to the channels 42 formed in the sides 24 of the stackable trays as shown in FIG. 3. Such a configuration may allow for placement of the upper stackable tray 20 b on the lower stackable tray 20 a regardless of rotational configuration (in other words, the upper stacked tray 20 b may be rotated 90, 180 or 270 degrees and still have aligning protrusions 50 and channels 52). In an alternate embodiment of the present invention, the protrusions 50 and channels 52 may be formed along substantially the entire length of each upper edge 48 and base 32, respectively, of each stackable tray 20.

The unique nesting and locking design, as shown in FIG. 4 or as shown in FIG. 5, or as may be envisioned by a combination of FIGS. 4 and 5, may provide for additional stability when the stackable trays 20 are stacked on top of one another. Conventional trays which may be stacked on top of each other may not have the nesting and locking design of the present invention. These trays may slide horizontally on each other when a lower tray is tipped at an angle. Such stability may be useful for transportation of the stackable trays 20 either in vehicles or on carts at the landscape jobsite.

Referring to FIGS. 6, 7 and 8, there are shown perspective plan, side and perspective bottom views, respectively, of a stackable tray 60 according to an embodiment of the present invention. A tray base 62 may be similar to the base 20 described above and may be sized appropriately to carry a certain number of pre-potted plants and/or poly packs. Sides 64 of the stackable tray 60 may include an upper side portion 66 and a lower side portion 68. The upper side portion 66 may be joined to the lower side portion 68 by a flexible member 70, such as a piece of flexible plastic or the like. As will be described in more detail below, the flexible member 70 may allow the upper side portion 66 to be folded back so that an exterior surface 72 a (facing up in the perspective bottom view of FIG. 8) of the upper side portion 66 may press against an exterior surface 72 b of the lower side portion 68.

The sides 64 of the stackable tray 60 may have both corner reinforcing hard points 61 b and central reinforcing hard points 61 a, similar to the reinforcing hard points described above. The reinforcing hard points 61 a, 61 b may be separately formed on each of the upper side portion 66 and the lower side portion 68. When the stackable tray 60 is assembled (see FIG. 10), the reinforcing hard points may be capable of transmitting weight from a top of the tray to the base of the tray, similar to the reinforcing hard point described above with reference to FIG. 2.

Tabs 74 may be present on one side of the upper side portion 66 and lower side portion 68. Tab receivers 76 may be present on the other side of the upper side portion 66 and the lower side portion 68. When assembled, as described in more detail below, the tabs 74 may fit into the tab receivers 76 to maintain the stackable tray 60 in an assembled state. Alternatively, the tabs 74 may be present on both sides of the upper side portion 66 and the lower side portion 68 of one side 64. The tab receivers 76 may be present on adjacent sides 64. In this configuration, sides 64 opposite each other may have tabs 74 on each end thereof while the other two opposite sides may have tab receivers 76 on each end thereof.

Referring now to FIGS. 9 and 10, there are shown perspective views of the stackable tray 60 being assembled. From a flattened configuration, as shown in FIG. 6, the sides 64 may be brought together to form the full-height stackable tray 60 as shown in FIG. 9. The tabs 74 may be inserted into the tab receivers 76 to secure the sides 64 together. There may be, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, one tab 74 and one tab receiver 76 for each of the upper side portion 66 and the lower side portion 68. The tab 74 and tab receiver 76 may be any conventional means for securing two parts together. For example, the tab 74 may contain ridges that are held in place with mating ridges on the tab receiver 76. Alternatively, the tab and tab receiver may be a hook and latch type of system (such as Velcro™). According to another embodiment, the tabs 74 may contain a hole (not shown) which may mate with a button formed in the adjacent side.

Referring to FIGS. 11 and 12, there are shown perspective views of the stackable tray 60 being disassembled into a half-height configuration. A half-height configuration may be useful when a retailer is displaying plants inside of the tray 60. According to one aspect of the present invention, the upper side portion 66 may fold down onto the lower side portion 68 as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12. Once folded down, the tabs 74 and tab receivers 76 may be mated, as described above, to secure the sides 64 in a half-height configuration.

As can be seen from FIGS. 11 and 12, when the hand holds (referred to as hand holds 78 in FIG. 11) are in an upper half of each of the upper side portion 66 and the lower side portion 68, the hand holds 78 of FIGS. 11 and 12 do not align when the stackable tray 60 is converted into its half-height configuration. Therefore, referring to FIGS. 13 and 14, there are shown assembled and flattened perspective drawings, respectively, of a stackable tray 80 having an alternate configuration of hand holds 82 according to the present invention. In this alternate configuration, the hand holds 82 may be formed in a lower part of the upper side portion 84 and in an upper part of the lower side portion 86. In this configuration, when the upper side portion 84 is folded down onto the lower side portion 86, the hand holds 82 from the upper side portion 84 and the lower side portion 86 may align as shown in FIG. 13.

As can also be seen and appreciated from FIG. 13, when configured in a half-height configuration, the stackable tray 80 may include the nesting and locking features as described above in the embodiments of the invention without folding sides. With this feature, each of the upper side portion 84 and lower side portion 86 may be, for example, 6 inches in height. Therefore, the stackable tray 80 may be convertible from a tall stackable tray having a 12 inch height (similar to that shown in FIG. 10, for example) to a shorter stackable tray having a 6 inch height. While this design may not allow for the retail marketing feature as described above (wherein the sides may be folded down to better display the plants), this design may be useful in that a single tray may be placed in inventory that may allow for plant protection for either shorter or taller plants.

The sides of the stackable tray 80 may have both corner reinforcing hard points 81 b and central reinforcing hard points 81 a, similar to the reinforcing hard points described above. The reinforcing hard points 81 a, 81 b may be separately formed on each of the upper side portion 84 and the lower side portion 86. When the stackable tray 80 is assembled, the reinforcing hard points may be capable of transmitting weight from a top of the tray to the base of the tray, similar to the reinforcing hard point described above with reference to FIG. 2.

Referring now to FIGS. 15 and 16, there are shown flattened and assembled perspective drawings, respectively, of a stackable tray 90 having an alternate configuration of hand holds 92 according to the present invention. In this alternate configuration, the hand holds 92 may be formed in a central part of both the upper side portion 94 and the lower side portion 96. In this configuration, when the upper side portion 94 is folded down onto the lower side portion 96, the hand holds 92 from the upper side portion 94 and the lower side portion 96 may align as shown in FIG. 16.

The sides of the stackable tray 90 may have both corner reinforcing hard points 91 b and central reinforcing hard points 91 a, similar to the reinforcing hard points described above. The reinforcing hard points 91 a, 91 b may be separately formed on each of the upper side portion 94 and the lower side portion 96. When the stackable tray 90 is assembled, the reinforcing hard points may be capable of transmitting weight from a top of the tray to the base of the tray, similar to the reinforcing hard point described above with reference to FIG. 2.

In each of the designs above, and as shown specifically in FIG. 16, there may be a label section 98 on at least one of the upper side portion 94 and the lower side portion 96. The label section 98 may be, for example, a section of flat plastic (without the mesh design) wherein a label (not shown), such as a bar code or a radio-frequency ID device, may be placed. The label on the label section 98 may provide inventory control data, plant identification, pricing information and the like.

The stackable trays 20 of the present invention may be made from a plastic material, such as polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, polyethylene, polypropylene, and the like. The stackable trays 20 may be manufactured according to any conventional methods known to one skilled in the art.

It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing relates to exemplary embodiments of the invention and that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims. 

1. A carrying tray comprising: a base; a plurality of side walls attached to the base and extending above the items to be carried in the tray; at least one of the side walls includes a configuration that allows air circulation inside the tray; at least one of the side walls includes a hand hold; and at least one of the side walls includes a nesting and locking component.
 2. The carrying tray according to claim 1, wherein the items to be carried include plants.
 3. The carrying tray according to claim 1, wherein each side wall has a mesh or a lattice configuration.
 4. The carrying tray according to claim 1, wherein each side wall extends from about 6 to about 12 inches from a base of the tray.
 5. The carrying tray according to claim 1, wherein the nesting and locking component includes a protrusion in at least a portion of an extended side portion extending from an upper edge of the tray.
 6. The carrying tray according to claim 5, wherein the nesting and locking component includes a channel in at least a portion of the side walls of the tray, wherein when a first tray is stacked on top of a second tray, the protrusion fits into the channel.
 7. The carrying tray according to claim 6, wherein the protrusion and the channel are placed symmetrically on each side of the tray.
 8. The carrying tray according to claim 1, wherein the nesting and locking component includes an upper edge protrusion in at least a portion of an upper edge of the tray.
 9. The carrying tray according to claim 8, wherein the nesting and locking component includes a base channel in at least a portion of a base of the tray, wherein when a first tray is stacked on top of a second tray, the upper edge protrusion fits into the base channel.
 10. The carrying tray according to claim 1, wherein the nesting and locking component includes an extended side portion extending from at least a portion of an upper edge of the tray, wherein when a first tray is stacked on top of a second tray, the extended side portion prevents the first tray from sliding off the second tray.
 11. The carrying tray according to claim 1, further comprising reinforcing hard points for transferring a weight load through the tray to a base of the tray.
 12. The carrying tray according to claim 11, wherein the reinforcing hard points are located along each corner and the sides of the tray.
 13. The carrying tray according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of side walls may have a first side wall height or a second, reduced side wall height.
 14. The carrying tray according to claim 13, further comprising a flexible member extending across at least one of the plurality of side walls, the flexible member permitting the at least one of the plurality of side walls to be folded to the second, reduced side wall height.
 15. The carrying tray according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of side walls may be moved from a disassembled state to an assembled state, the disassembled state being where the plurality of side walls are substantially parallel to the base of the tray and the assembled state being where each of the plurality of side walls are orthogonal to the base and to each adjacent one of the side walls.
 16. The carrying tray according to claim 1, further comprising: at least one tab on one of the plurality of side walls; and at least one tab receiver on a second, adjacent one of the plurality of side walls, wherein the tabs fit into the tab receivers to hold each of the plurality of side walls with each adjacent one of the side walls.
 17. A stackable plant tray comprising: a plurality of side walls that extend above the plants carried in the tray; at least one of the side walls and the base of the tray includes a configuration that allows air circulation inside the tray; reinforcing hard points for transferring a weight load through the tray to the base of the tray; and at least one of the side walls includes a nesting and locking component.
 18. The stackable plant tray according to claim 13, wherein at least one of the side walls includes a hand hold.
 19. The stackable plant tray according to claim 13, wherein the nesting and locking component includes a protrusion in at least one of a) a portion of an extended side portion extending from an upper edge of the tray, and b) an upper edge of the tray.
 20. The stackable plant tray according to claim 15, wherein the nesting and locking component includes a channel in at least one of a) a portion of the side walls of the tray, and b) a portion of a base of the tray, wherein when a first tray is stacked on top of a second tray, the protrusion fits into the channel.
 21. A stackable plant tray comprising: a base; and a plurality of side walls attached to the base and extending above the items to be carried in the tray, wherein at least one of the side walls includes a nesting and locking component; and at least one of the plurality of side walls may be changed between a first side wall height or a second, reduced side wall height.
 22. The stackable plant tray according to claim 21, further comprising a flexible member extending across at least one of the plurality of side walls, the flexible member dividing the at least one of the plurality of side walls into an upper side wall portion and a lower side wall portion and permitting the upper side wall portion to be folded over the lower side wall portion to provide the second, reduced side wall height.
 23. The stackable plant tray according to claim 22, further comprising a first hand hold formed in the upper side wall portion and a second hand hold formed in the lower side wall portion, wherein the first hand hold aligns with the second hand hold when the upper side wall portion is folded over the lower side wall portion.
 24. The stackable plant tray according to claim 21, wherein the plurality of side walls may be moved from a disassembled state to an assembled state, the disassembled state being where the plurality of side walls are substantially parallel to the base of the tray and the assembled state being where each of the plurality of side walls are orthogonal to the base and to each adjacent one of the side walls.
 25. The stackable plant tray according to claim 21, further comprising: at least one tab on one of the plurality of side walls; and at least one tab receiver on a second, adjacent one of the plurality of side walls, wherein the tabs fit into the tab receivers to hold each of the plurality of side walls with each adjacent one of the side walls. 